Flower farming – loves and hates

Today marks a year since I gave up my office job to take a gap year (actually two) to try and get  the flower business going. So far, it’s been a blast.

Things I’ve loved

The sense of community

When you’re supplying a community with locally-grown flowers, you meet some lovely people. Unlike when you sell something en masse, you can put faces to names, talk with customers and build friendships. There are also other people who regularly like our posts on social media. I haven’t met them yet - and may never meet them - but their support means an awful lot.

The joy that flowers bring, always

Nothing beats the smile on someone’s face when you give them their flower delivery or they take away some flowers. It’s a million times more fulfilling than shuffling paper.

Being outside in the awesomeness of nature

It doesn’t matter what else is going on in your life, or the world at large, plants just keep doing their thing. A tiny dot of a snapdragon seed that grows into the most intricate and beautiful flower is a truly, amazing thing. And it’s happening the whole farm over.

Being my own boss

I love being in control of what I do and how I use my time (Mother Nature aside). I might still work eighty hours a week, but I get to choose those hours and it’s all just for us.

Every morning, I wake up excited about the day

I have a long list of things to do each day, things to learn, and new things to try. I am absolutely loving  pretty much everything that I’m doing.

Things I’ve not been so keen on

Things you might expect, like horrible weather, hard graft and farming failures are actually all OK. It’s the business side of a flower farm that’s the toughest.

No guaranteed income

I think the biggest negative I’ve had to overcome is having no guaranteed income from week to week. It’s a reality for anyone that is self-employed and runs their own business, and I definitely miss the security of having a regular salary going into my bank account. As we build the business, we hope this will become less of an issue. And to be frank, if it doesn’t, we’ll have to close.

Hard work doesn’t equal income

There’s no correlation between how hard and smart you work, and how much money you make. As my brother-in-law, George, says, creative pursuits are often a lifestyle choice, rather than a profitable one. That said, we’ll expand again next year to benefit from more scale, and diversify a little more – perhaps run some workshops, do more with dried flowers in the winter, and maybe even do some wedding flowers.

Flowers are, sadly, undervalued

People do not want to pay a lot for flowers and can’t possibly see how much work there is behind the scenes to produce the flowers that make a bouquet. A farmer’s market means four hours picking, four hours arranging, and seven hours selling. Ignoring all the time spent growing and the money on materials, if we make £300, that’s £10 per hour each – or £20 per hour for me if I don’t pay Roger!

Social media

Being an introvert, by nature, putting myself out there on social media propels me right out of my comfort zone. But I’m getting more used to it, and, who knows, next year, I may even get myself in front of the camera a little more.

That damn bindweed

My nemesis, bindweed. Enough said.

Zero regrets

I have zero regrets about my decision to try a different career. It’s been great to be at home to support Roger through his chemotherapy. It feels a real accomplishment to take something from an idea to a professional business. And every day, I face a new challenge and learn something new. Back to my mantra: “one life on this earth is all we get … and we are fools if we do not live it as fully and bravely and beautifully as we can”.

Bulb to Bunch | Beautiful, locally-grown flowers, reminiscent of an English country garden, available as bouquets, jam jars, arrangements, in buckets and wholesale.
www.bulbtobunch.com